This invention relates in general to roller skates and, more particularly, to roller skates having wheels disposed at an angle.
Inline roller skates have long been known. The wheels of the inline skates are arranged in tandem and disposed in a common plane. The tandem wheels disposed in a common plane cause the skate to travel in a straight line. In order to turn the skate, the skater must lean the skate, causing the wheels to lose some traction with the skating surface and slide. The more the wheels lean, the less traction they have on the skating surface. The reduced traction causes the wheels to slip. As the wheels slip, the skate turns.
Within the past few years, roller skates have been produced where the wheels are arranged in tandem, but not disposed in a common plane. Typically, the wheels of these skates are arranged in alternately angled directions. For instance, one front wheel and one rear wheel are angled to the left and the other wheels are angled right. This arrangement is sometimes called a v-line skate.
When a skater with v-line skates leans the skates over to turn, those wheels angled in the direction of the turn become closer to horizontal with the skating surface than would like wheels in a standard inline skate. Those wheels angled opposite the direction of turn remain more upright than like wheels in a standard inline skate. This action greatly improves turning and maneuverability.
In the sport of inline hockey, there is a great desire to improve the maneuverability and to make the skate perform more like an ice hockey skate. The V-line or angled wheels do exactly that. They improve turning and make the skate feel more like a person is on ice.
The V-line type frames that are currently being used work well, but they are lacking in many respects over other skates. Conventional v-line skates support the wheel axles from only one side. Furthermore, each of the wheels is supported independently of the others. Both of these issues result in a heavy skate that is weak and lacking in stiffness.
Stiffness is important to skaters because a stiffer skate greatly improves acceleration and speed by transferring more energy to the skating surface. Conventional v-line skates lose stiffness by supporting the axle on only one side and by supporting each axle independently.
Conventional v-line skates are also structurally weak because the axles are supported from only one side. This causes the skate to be weaker and more prone to breaking. In order to compensate for this weakness, thicker material is used for the skate axle. The thicker material results in a heavier skate.
Skaters often lift their skates hundreds or even thousands of times a day. A heavy skate may cause the skater to become fatigued. Lighter skates would cause less fatigue. Additionally, lighter skates enable the skater to accelerate faster.
Many conventional v-line skates also require special wheels. As wheels tend to wear out, it would be more convenient for a skate to use standardly available wheels.
According to principles of the present invention, a roller skate has a base, a plurality of tandem frames, a like plurality of axles, and a like plurality of wheels. Each frame is affixed to the base and has bilateral, spaced apart, opposing side walls that define a wheel well. Adjacent side walls of the frames are interconnected to form a unitary opposing structure. The side walls of one of the frames are angularly related to the side walls of at least one of the other frames. Each axle is carried in a wheel well by the side walls of one of the frames. Each wheel is disposed within one of the wheel wells and mounted for rotation on the axle in the wheel well.
According to further principles of the present invention, the roller skate may further include an article of footwear, such as a shoe or a boot, to which the base is either affixed or integral. Additionally, at least one brace may interconnect the opposing walls of at least one frame.